


Role Reversal AU

by lostplanetvoltia



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Age Swap, Alternate Universe - Role Reversal
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-12
Updated: 2018-07-20
Packaged: 2018-08-14 16:35:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 26
Words: 11,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8021140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lostplanetvoltia/pseuds/lostplanetvoltia
Summary: Role swap where Damian is the first and somehow starts a family without trying.





	1. Damian

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is my first time writing a fanfic, so please excuse me if the characters are ooc or if the grammar is off. I had this idea for a while so I'll be posting short snippets for this. More characters will be added on later.

It was the dead of the night when a darkened shadow descended upon the streets of Gotham. He quickly hurried towards his destination with a precious bundled cradled within his arms. The man suddenly stopped at his destination. Wayne Manor. Approaching the steps of the door, the bundle shifted slightly and made a questioning noise. The man looked down and gently pushed back the cloth to take one final look at his son. The baby cooed and reached up for the man’s face as the man smiled.

“Be good, little one.” He whispered as kissed the top of the child’s head. The child settled down and began to drift off as the man rewrapped him and set him on the porch. After a moment, he took out an envelope and placed it inside the folds of the blanket before turning and walking away.

“I love you, my son… Bruce.” Damian whispered as he slunk off into the shadows just as the sun started to rise.


	2. Bruce

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damian is 22, Tim is 12/13 and Bruce is 2.

Stepping down the stairs to the cave, careful not to alert the sole occupant that he was there, Tim crept slowly towards the monitors Damian was sitting at. A child no older than the age of two was laughing on the screen as the adults nearby played with him.

“Is that him?” Tim whispered as he made his way next to Damian’s side. The man in the seat made no response as he stared at the child gurgling and attempting to crawl to the nearest toy that caught his fancy. “Yes.” Damian finally answered back as he grudgingly sat up and closed off the monitor feed.

“If you don’t mind me asking… why did you give him up?” 

More silence followed. Damian stood up and started making his exit as Tim watched on. He stood at the bottom of the staircase and remained still before saying, “Because this isn’t the life for him.”


	3. Dick

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dick is 9 and Bruce is around 3 or 4 years old.

The door slammed, and Bruce looked up from the book he was reading. Making his way towards the staircase, he looked down to see his parents talking to someone at the door. Whatever they were saying, it seemed urgent. Climbing down quietly, he walked closer to get a better look.

 There was a boy accompanied by a police officer at the entrance. Looking closer, he could see that the boy was a little older than him, maybe four or so years? He had black hair and blue eyes like him, and was wearing some kind of leotard. Was he a performer? He also looked tired and unhappy. The officer seemed to be done talking as he turned around and left, leaving the boy behind. His mother turned around and saw him. Busted.

“Bruce, can you come over please? This is Dick Grayson, and he will be living with us until further notice.”


	4. The Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bruce is 8 in this chapter

Sirens blast through the air, but the only thing Bruce can make out in the haze was the cooling bodies of his parents lying dead in a puddle of blood. _How did it go so wrong?_ There are voices shouting in the background, but none of them registers as he’s kneels in the growing puddle of blood. A hand rested on his shoulder and Bruce flinches “Kid. I’m sorry for your loss, but you have to come with us to the station for questioning.”

\---

Alfred came after what felt like an eternity to pick him up.

Everything after felt like a blur. Bruce thought there might have been a funeral, and people giving him their condolences.

The sun was shining through the window.

_Why?_

It felt like the world had ended, but why was the world still acting as if his parent’s death never happened at all?

Walking through the halls of the manor, he stopped in front of his father’s study. The door has been closed ever since the death of his parents. Making his decision, he turned the knob and stepped in. Nothing looked out of place in the room. Bruce approached the desk in the study and stared down at the drawer. Swallowing, he slowly pulled it open and saw a stack of papers inside.

_What was he doing? Maybe he would be closer to his parents this way since he will now never..._

Pushing that thought away, he began shuffling through the papers. Many were about the current affairs of Wayne Industries, finances and business deals. He stopped at one that seemed to be a love letter for his mother. The slight smile on his face fell as he read through it and realised that the contents were completely different to what he thought the letter contained.

He dropped the paper in shock.

_His parents...weren’t his parents?_

Dropping down to his knees, Bruce stared blankly ahead.

_Was his life a lie?_

_Why would they lie to him about being adopted?_

Alfred came running in soon after, alerted by the sound. Looking in, the aged butler saw the child kneeling with his head down, a sheet of paper close by. Approaching him slowly, Alfred kneeled down next to the boy and put a comforting hand on his back. Glancing at the sheet, he knew why the boy was in the state he was in.

“I suppose I must to explain this turn of events to you, Master Bruce.” The butler says softly.


	5. The Start

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damian is 20

He couldn’t believe it

Staring down at the bundle in his arms, Damian was struggling to process the fact that he was a father.

Sure, the fling was a onetime thing, but he hadn’t expected a child to come out of the union. The mother didn’t even name his son. Sitting down slowly, he rested his head against the tree where he was asked to meet the woman. He had assumed that she would talk about the next mission they would do for the League, but this was something he hadn’t seen coming.

Looking away, Damian sighed, leaned back on the tree and closed his eyes.

His mind began putting together pieces of a plan on what to do next. As night fell, he crept back towards his chambers and placed his sleeping son onto the bed. Pulling his desk drawer open and retrieving some paper and a pen, he sat down and began writing. He was going to turn his life around. The League is no place for a child. He would ensure that his child would receive a better life than he ever did.  

He needs to leave. The sooner the better. Doing so tonight would be the best option. He had to for the sake of his son.


	6. Duke

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This happens right after Damian leaves Bruce with the Waynes. Duke is 10.

It’s cold.

Duke Thomas slides down the wall of the alleyway and hunches down on himself. 

This city has taken too much from him. He didn’t know where his parents were as there was an attack when he and his family where on an outing to the mall where he was separated from them during the chaos. It has been several weeks since that event, and he has been living on the streets since then. 

He could remember people screaming and his mom pushing him away from the danger. All of the shelters were full and he wasn’t sure how much longer he could last on his own. 

He froze. 

Someone was in the alley with him. Curling up further behind some boxes, he hoped that whoever it was would pass him by. Soft footsteps became louder as they neared the place he was hiding. 

It stopped. Duke could see the feet of the person. After a moment, whoever the person was bent down and dropped something before straightening up and walking away.

Duke silently counted twenty seconds before sticking his head out. 

There was no one in sight.

Looking down at what the mysterious figure placed in front of his spot, he grinned slightly as he saw that it was a wad of bills. This would last him for a few weeks if he spent it right. Tucking it in his pocket, Duke grinned as he walked down the alley to buy dinner for the night.


	7. Confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter and the one that comes after took the longest for me to write because I had trouble figuring out the voices of the characters and how they would react in these situations. Thank you for waiting. The next chapter will be posted around next week.
> 
> Thanks again to my beta reader [doyoulikeketchup](http://archiveofourown.org/users/doyoulikeketchup)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damian is 31, Tim/Duke are both 21 and Bruce is 11.

Damian was just about to meet up with Duke and Tim at Crime Alley after he was done his area of patrol when he heard someone young run towards him. Before he could confront them, they spoke up and asked:

“Are you my father?”

Damian froze, and then turned around slowly. There was a young boy with dark blue eyes staring up at him. Accompanying him was a boy in his late teens and an elderly man in a black suit.

He didn’t know what to do. It had been 11 years since he has dropped the boy off at the Wayne Manor, so that he could have a better life. Damian hadn’t expected the couple to die so soon, but that was life. But why was the child seeking him out now? And how had he figured out? He was still frozen, staring at the small child. What should he do?

“Why didn’t you want me?”

Well, that was one way to start explaining.

“I…” Damian started, but he was cut off.

“Was I not good enough? Why did you just leave me? What kind of person are you, leaving a newborn on at a stranger’s door?” the accusations started off at a normal pitch, but increased in volume as the boy started breaking down into tears. The older man stepped forward and placed a hand on Bruce’s shoulder, giving a disappointed look at Damian.

Damian felt a wave of guilt. He didn’t even know the older gentleman in the suit.

“Bruce …I…” Damian tried to explain, except he felt a nudge on his leg.

What? It happened again.

“Are you….kicking me?” he asked

“YES!” the child screamed as he continued to kick.

Or would have, if his guardian didn’t bodily pull him back with the child now crying in earnest with tears streaming down his face. What a mess. Raising his hand and letting it run through his hair, Damian stared down at the duo, trying to come up with a good explanation that would satisfy the child.

“Bruce…I understand your confusion on learning that the Waynes were not your original parents, and your grief for them is completely understandable. It was partially selfish of me to leave you with them and not raise you myself, but you have to understand that the life they gave you was a lot better than what I would have been able to provide for you. You were happy living with your parents, weren’t you?”

At hearing this, the child sobbed even louder. Sighing, Damian knelt down and looked the boy in the eyes.

“I wasn’t there for you back then, but if you would give me a chance, I can be here for you now.”

Bruce looked up at the man, his tears slowing. He nodded and wiped his eyes on his sleeves.

“Thank you.” Damian said sincerely. “My name is Damian...”


	8. Not As You Know It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce is 11 and Dick is 16/17ish

“Hey, Bruce?”

“Yes Dick?” Bruce replied without looking up.

It’s been months since Bruce had found his biological father, and almost two years since Bruce found out that the Waynes had adopted him. He seemed to be acting fine, compared to how he had yelled at Damian when the two first met.  Dick might have been older, but... he hadn’t connected much with Bruce when they first met since he was still trying to cope with the sudden loss of his parents. Bruce knew better than to disturb someone who didn’t want to talk, so nothing really came out of it.

Now that Bruce has also lost his parents, they had something in common... no matter how morbid that thought was. They could now try to connect since they were living with Bruce’s real dad now, and Dick wasn’t going anywhere for a while.

“We’ve... never really talked much before, but...if you need to talk with someone about something, I’m more than willing to listen Bruce.”

“What is there to talk about, Dick?” the boy retorted before walking away.

Well, he attempted to, before Dick reached out and grabbed his arm.

Bruce froze, turning his head to glare at the older teen.

“It’s not healthy, keeping in all your emotions like that. It’s ok to vent out what you’re feeling Bruce.” the older boy said kindly.

The younger boy was silent.

“How would you feel if one day, you lost everything, and then it turned out that the everything you thought was real is a lie? Sure, I know Damian has his reasons for leaving me with my parents, but… I wish they told me. Even though life with them was a lot better, it still hurts that there were things I never knew about them. I...I mean...” Bruce’s words were cut short when he started huffing, tears welling up and threatening to fall.

“Hey...it’s ok to be sad. Your parents were probably going to tell you at a later time, but would that have even changed  your relationship with them? They took you in even though you weren’t related and treated you as their own. That’s what parents do. They loved you, and they didn’t want to hurt you.” Dick said soothingly, taking the smaller boy into a hug.

“Then...why…?” Bruce whimpered out before the teen.

“Well, how would you tell a kid? It is pretty important information. They probably wanted to wait until you were older when they knew that you would trust them, since by then, you would know that they wouldn’t give you up after all that time spent together. They loved you, and that’s what matters. They would be sad that you’re upset, but that would tell them that you cared enough to be sad, even after you found out the truth on your own.”

Bruce remained silent, so Dick took this as a sign that what he was saying was reaching the younger boy and he continued.

“Damian…well I’m sure he had his reasons for leaving you, but you ended up being happy in the end, right?”

The smaller boy gave a hesitant nod, and tilted his head up to look at Dick with teary blue eyes.

“If you’re feeling better, then are you okay with going out to get some ice cream? I know a great ice cream store that serves a ton of cool flavours.” The older boy said, grinning softly. Bruce smiled back at him. “Come on then, if we leave now, they won’t notice that we’re missing and we can make it back in time for dinner.”


	9. Breakfast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This takes place before Dick and Bruce joins.
> 
> Here are the ages for everyone in this chapter:  
> Damian: 24  
> Tim/Stephanie/Duke:14  
> Jason:12

“Jason! Get the door!” Duke yelled from the kitchen as he was preparing breakfast for the ragtag group he called his family.

“I’m going, I’m going!” Jason shouted back as he ran down the stairs to reach the door. Checking the peephole first, Jason saw that the person at the door was Tim. Smiling, he quickly undid the latches and locks to let the older man into their house.

“Tim! You made it!” Jason said ecstatically.

“Did you miss me? I was only out for a few hours to pick up some stuff. And look who I found on my way back home?” Tim replied warmly as Stephanie Brown stepped into view.

“Hey kiddo! Were you good while I was away? You haven’t been giving Dami too much trouble have you?” the blonde greeted.

“Steph!” Jason yelled as he ran up to her to give her a huge hug.

“Speaking of which, where is that grump?” asked Tim as he finished putting down his bags on the ground while looking at the younger boy.

“He’s still upstairs sleeping! Last night really took a lot out of him!” Jason replied as he started dragging Stephanie towards the living room.

Duke came out of the kitchen with the pancakes and started putting them on the plates. He paused as he reached the last plate. “Hey Steph, are you staying to eat?” he asked.

“Yes!” she replied back, entering the kitchen with a giggling Jason as Tim was seating himself at his spot.

“What, no waffles?” Stephanie pouted when she saw what was on the menu.

“Hey, don’t give me that look until you actually try them! My pancakes are actually good!” Duke retorted as he took some syrup and poured it on his serving.

“That’s up for debate.” She mumbled as she waited for the bottle to reach her.

“Don’t be like that Steph. Duke spent a long time trying to perfect his pancake recipe. And besides, I bet your waffles aren’t as good as what Duke can make.” Tim mumbled while chewing.

“Oh, really? Well I’d never! Duke!” Stephanie pushed back from her seat and stood up.

“Huh? What is it Steph?” Duke asked as he stuck his head out from the kitchen.

“You, me, we’re having a cook off. Now!” she stated, throwing her fork down on the table.

“Really? Now? Can’t you wait until after we’re done eating?” Duke groaned back, slowly making his way back to his seat.

“Works fine for me. More food for everyone.” Jason spoke up, words muffled by the food in his mouth.

“Chew and swallow before talking Jason.” Tim scolded. Jason ignored him and continued, “Oh! Maybe we should wake Damian up so he can see how many people are better than him at cooking!”

Duke stood next to Jason and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Maybe next time Jason. Remember, he did spend most of the night running around doing who knows what. You don’t want him here all cranky.”

Jason slid back down and pouted. “Finnneeeee. But I still want the extras after you and Steph are done that contest of yours.”

Sipping his coffee, Tim smiled to himself as he heard his family continue to squabble over petty issues. Sure, they might be hard to handle at times, but they were still his. Even with all the rough spots they were put through, in the end, it was all worth it to have happy days like these. 


	10. The League

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back to present day! This is around a year after Damian and Bruce meet. Here are everyone's ages (might adjust them later):
> 
> Damian:32  
> Tim/Stephanie/Duke:22  
> Jason:20  
> Dick:18  
> Bruce:12

_“I won’t let you take him!”_

There is the sound of metal clashing as Bruce slowly comes back into consciousness. His head is ringing as he opens his eyes. Through blurry vision, he can make out that he’s in a dark underground room lit in dim candle light with two dark figures fighting.

“He is mine, just like how you were supposed to be before you turned your back on me!” is the curt reply over the grunts from the battle.

Bruce can feel sensation returning to his limbs as he carefully pushes himself off the floor to better take in his surroundings. Jason and Duke are fighting off the hoards of ninjas that kept coming in to subdue them while Tim is lying unconscious on the ground with Stephanie by his side, unsuccessfully trying to get the older man to wake up.

Turning his attention back to the duel at the centre of the room, Bruce gasps. A man he’s never seen before in green robes was locked in battle with his…

“Damian!” Duke cries as he manages to block an attack that was aimed at the back of Damian’s head.

The movement distracts Damian enough that the unknown man manages to knock him down with his sword. Pointing the tip of it at his head the man smirks.

“Surrender now and your death will be swift.”

Damian just glares up at the man and gritted his teeth. “N...never…” he grinds out, trying to support his weight with one arm. His arm gives out and he collapses back onto the ground.

It was happening again. He was going to lose another parent. Why… just...why? He just found out he existed. This was far too cruel for Bruce to contemplate.

Time seemed to stand still as he saw the blade slowly being swung downwards towards its target.

Something seemed to shift as Bruce’s vision was obscured.

There was a thunk.

And then nothing.

He almost felt sad.


	11. The League Pt.2

 

Damian was livid. He received a panicked call from Alfred telling him that Bruce was missing from the manor. It didn’t take long to figure out the cause of his disappearance. On Bruce’s bed, there was a dagger with the hilt bearing the symbol of the League of Assassins. Ra’s al Ghul had stolen his son away into the night, towards the very place Damian hoped Bruce would never set foot. After alerting the others, they made their way towards Nanda Parbat to confront the Demon’s Head. Making their way through the long halls, they were ambushed by the guards lying in wait for them.

When they finally ventured into the assembly room, Damian only had eyes for the man who kidnapped his son. Feeling furious, he made a headlong charge at the person responsible, leaving the others to follow behind.

 

“Leave my family alone!” Damian grunted as he heaved his blade towards the Demon’s Head. He was easily blocked.

 

“Family? The only family you have here is with me, boy.” Ra’s al Ghul snarled. “I give you my blessing as my right hand, and what do you do? You fled into the night like a coward who had something to hide. And what do you know? You were hiding a child from me. With your death, he will take your place as my heir, the position you wrongfully left. You were my greatest student and warrior, and this is how you repay me? This is only the payment that is long overdue, Damian.”

 

Now he was really seeing red. “I won’t let you take him!” Damian screamed, lunging towards the Demon’s Head.

“He is mine, just like how you were supposed to be before you turned your back on me!” Ra’s responds, easily blocking the blow.

“Damian!” Duke cried out. Startled, Damian turned to see Duke block an attack that was aimed towards the back of his head.

 

The movement distracted Damian enough that Ra’s managed to disarm and knock him down on his back with his sword. Blade out of his reach, Damian stared defiantly at the sword pointed at his throat. The Demon smirked.

 

”Surrender now and your death will be swift.”

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Duke overwhelmed by the many assailants beating him down. Tim was unconscious, Jason desperately trying to reach him while Stephanie was doing her best to defend Tim’s unmoving form, and Bruce...

Bruce was lying on the floor at the front of the room. Knowing the fate that awaited his son if he failed, Damian glared up at the man and grits his teeth. “N...never…” he grinds out, trying to support his weight with one arm. His arm gave out and he collapsed back onto the ground.

 

Ra’s laughed coldly, green eyes glaring down at him. “You were a fool, bringing children to fight your battles. I gave you a choice, but as always, you have squandered it. Say good bye to this life, Damian. Your son deserves so much more than a father like you.”

 

The blades came swinging down. Time slowed down as Damian stared at his reflection in the blade. As he was resigned to his fate, he closed his eyes. There was a metallic twang as something hit the steel blade. Opening his eyes in shock, he saw Ra’s glowering at an unseen assailant, just out of Damian’s view. Quickly assessing the situation, it seemed that someone had fired an arrow at the sword and knocked it out of his hands. Taking advantage of the moment, Damian grabbed the sword Ra’s dropped and tackled the older man.

Fury filled the older man’s eyes as he pulled out a dagger to counter the attack.

 

“The title of Ra’s al Ghul’s heir is empty! Why would an immortal even need an heir in the first place? I don’t exist for your satisfaction, not you, or anyone else who sees me as a possession! “Damian shouted, trading blow for blow as he defended himself against the onslaught of strikes.  

 

Successfully disarming the man who gave him purpose for the first few years of his life, Damian pointed his sword at Ra’s throat and firmly placed a foot on his back.

“You listen to me, and listen carefully. I am done with being your pawn, and I most certainly am not a mindless drone you think you can control. Come for me or my family again, and it will be the last thing you will ever do. Am. I. Clear?” He waited until the immortal under his heel finally gave in and nodded begrudgingly. Using the hilt of his blade, Damian knocked out the man he once looked up to. Stepping away from the body, he saw that his kids were barely managing to fend off their attackers. Thinking quickly, he stepped back towards Ra’s and propped him up.

“Assassins!” he shouted, voice booming through the chamber. All the combatants froze and stared in his direction. “Drop your weapons, and no harm shall come to your leader. This is your only warning.”

 

The masked assassins did so.  Damian released his grip on Ra’s. “Now leave.” He shouted. The assassins paused for a moment, wondering if he was serious. When he glared back at them, they got the message and fled.

Looking around the room, he spotted his charges either knocked out or struggling to stand.  
He made his way towards the nearest one, which happened to be Duke.  Putting a comforting hand on the younger man’s shoulder, he said “It’s over. Let’s get out of here.”


	12. Cass

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damian is 32, Tim is 22 and Cass is 21.

Damian was just minding his business, listening to Tim’s report when he thought he heard something down the alley. Tim picked up on this and looked up at him. Damian lifted his hand and the other man fell back. Making his way slowly to where he thought he heard the sound, a hand flashed out and grabbed him by the neck, tossing him down while the owner of the hand zipped out and shoved a knee between his shoulder blades.

Tim scrambled to his side, but the figure pulled out a knife using their other hand and pointed it at him.

Turning his head, Damian could make out the figure’s eyes glinting from beneath the shadows. Trying to figure out who the person was, Tim gasped.

 

“Are you…from the league? Why are you here? Did Ra’s send you?”

 

That only got them silence from the lone assassin. Thinking quickly, Damian tried remembering the whereabouts of his family currently. Jason should be tracking the latest rumors of a new gang surfacing; Duke and Stephanie were teaming up together to dismantle a drug trafficking ring and Bruce should be safe at Gotham Academy, even though he had protested that he hated the school and wanted to be home schooled instead. His train of thought was abruptly derailed when the assassin knocked him over the head when they noticed he wasn’t paying attention.

Shifting around to glare at his assailant, he noticed that the uniform they were wearing was modified from that of the regular foot soldiers the league employed. Could it be…?

 

“Cassandra? Is that you?” Damian tentatively asked, not wanted to rile up the person pinning him down. 

 

He was only met with silence. After several tense seconds, the assassin nodded and slowly removed her hood and mask.

 

“It is…good to see you again.” He said softly, staring up into her warm brown eyes.

 

Cassandra said nothing.

 

“On that day, were... were you the one who saved me?” Damian asked.

 

Tim glanced at him with a confused look on his face.

 

“When Ra’s was about to land the final blow...you were the one you fired that arrow at Ra’s al Ghul, yes? Why did you do that?”

 

Squinting down at him, Cassandra looked at Tim before signing.

 

_“You left. Ra’s hope for the future left the League and I wanted to know why. You were gone for years. He found out you had a child. Then you came back.  But you weren’t alone. You had people willing to fight for you, even though the odds weren’t on their side. What is that like, having people who care for you as a person and not as a tool? ”_

 

He didn’t know how to respond.

 

“I...”

 

_“I want to know.”_

 

Staring up at her, he saw that she looked very tired, a feeling he’s known for too long. Making up his mind, he slowly managed to lift up his hand and offered it to her. She stared at him quizzically.

 

“You want to know? You can come live with me. You wouldn’t be a weapon who lives to serve the Demon. Instead, you will find that there are things worth living for instead of destroying. You can live as yourself, Cassandra.”

Holding his gaze for a moment, she took his hand and helped him up.

 

_“Thank you.”_


	13. Batcow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the chapter you've all been waiting for.

“What. Is. That?” Jason asked, a look of disbelief crossing his face.

“It’s a calf. Not surprised you haven’t seen one before since you live in this dump you call a city.” Damian replied, adjusting the sleepy calf in his arms.

“I know what a baby cow is! Where did you find it?”

“She.” Damian corrected, not bothering to look at him.

“OK! Geez, where did you find her? Cows don’t drop out of the sky here in Gotham!”

“There was a tip leading to a slaughterhouse that was a cover for a mad scientist’s lab. They were planning on using her for their genetic experiments by infecting her with new strains of disease.” He said gruffly. The little calf mooed loudly, wanting to be put down. Figuring she had enough, Damian compiled, placing her down on the living room table.

“What are you doing? We eat there! That’s gross!” Jason screeched. The older man ignored his protests, fixing the blankets that wrapped the little brown calf.

“Are you adopting it? Please tell me you aren’t. There’s not enough space in our house to raise a giant animal like that.”  Jason groaned.

“What if I am? I’ve managed to raise four unruly children here. Surely a cow would be easy compared to all the grief you have given me throughout the years.” The older man retorted.

Thinking his presence was necessary, Alfred the cat walked in, meowing loudly, wondering why his humans weren’t giving him the attention he wanted. Seeing the calf on the table made him pause. Then he decided that that was enough for the day and briskly left the room. Jason and Damian watched him leave before returning to their conversation.

“See? Even the cat doesn’t want it here!”  Jason exclaimed.

“Is that dinner?” Tim asked as he walked down the stairs, the commotion bringing him out of his room.

That was the last straw. There was a beat of silence.

 “How dare you? For that, this calf is now my favourite child. All of you, apologize to your sister this instant.” Damian huffed.

“What are you talking about? None of us are adopted! Hell, you don’t even legally exist in the system!” Jason screeched, outraged.

“That’s very cruel of you, Damian. What will Bruce think, seeing that he’s been replaced with a cow?” Tim said, trying his best to look stern, but failing. 

In the end, Batcow ended up living at the mansion with Bruce (after Bruce helped Damian beg Alfred to allow the calf to stay. Which took a lot of convincing. And disappointed looks from the old butler.)


	14. Shark Repellent

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damian is 32 while Bruce is 12.

It was his turn to bring Bruce home. Damian and Alfred worked out an unofficial joint custody agreement, as Damian didn’t exist in the system and wanted it to stay that way. Officially, Damian was just a baby sitter who took care of Bruce during the weekends while the aged butler spent the two days cleaning the enormous mansion.

Entering the living room where Bruce usually waited for him, he saw that the small child was sitting on one of the many couches, sketching something in a large sketchbook.

Approaching the child, Bruce looked up, startled, and relaxed minutely when he saw that it was just Damian.

“What are you drawing there, Bruce?” Damian asked.

“Well, last time I came over, Tim was working on some weird gadgets that he said would help with your night job or something. They looked really high-tech, like the stuff you see in a spy movie. So I decided to help out too! I’m drawing my ideas for gadgets you can use!” Bruce explained excitedly.

“Oh? Well, let’s take a look at it after we get back to my place.” Damian responded. After waiting for Bruce to pick up his bag, they turned and left the manor.

The drive to Damian’s home wasn’t long, and the time was shortened further by Bruce excitedly chattering away about his week.

Arriving at the house, Bruce dropped his belongings next to the staircase and ran to the living room couch, bringing his sketchbook with him. Flopping down, he opened the sketchbook up and looked eagerly at Damian as he walked in.

“Come on, come on! Don’t you want to see?”

Smiling softly, Damian sat down next to Bruce, seeing what he came up with.

There was an abstract drawing of a bat, a strange trap like device, something that looked like a walkie talkie-laser, a fork with a hidden compartment, a fusion between rollerblades and rocket wings, a bat themed car, boat, and other assortments of vehicles, and...

“Is that a can of...shark repellant? Why?” he asked incredulously.

“Why not?” Bruce shot back.

“Gotham isn’t near an ocean and I don’t think they can survive in Gotham’s mess of a bay either.”

“It’s always best to be prepared! Who knows, maybe one day you’ll get dumped in the ocean and there will be a lot of hungry sharks chasing after you! It’s not like you can karate punch one in the sea since you’re in their territory!”

“Really? Then where would I put it? It looks very cumbersome and takes up a lot of room on my person when I could be using other equipment that would help the situation better.”

“Then you’re not prepared! It doesn’t have to be a can! It could be in a...a packet!”

“A packet?”

“Yeah! It doesn’t take up much space! You just put it in your pocket and when you need it, rip it open and the sharks will go away!”

“Well, if you say so. Would you like to try out your idea in the Atlantic Ocean?”

“...Nope. No thanks. Oh! Let me show you what I drew yesterday in the garden... ”


	15. Lark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a role swap au, so of course that would mean Duke is the first hero of Gotham.
> 
> (also: what's up with Duke in the comics right now?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Went back and added ages to everyone at the start of chapters.
> 
> Here, Damian is 22 while Duke/Tim is 12

 

 

“Tt. What are you even doing, prancing around in that ridiculous outfit of yours?”

Duke stopped climbing the ladder and stared down at the man.

“Who are you?” Duke asked. This was the third month he’d spent venturing out of his adopted family’s house in his costume to fight crime in Gotham. He’s only managed to stop muggings and stop fights from breaking out, but it still made the people he saved happy that he was willing to defend them.

Not getting a response, Duke leapt down from the ladder to confront the older man. As he made his way closer, he saw that the older man had striking green eyes and unfamiliar features.

“You are causing a commotion with this ruckus you are making. Do stop at once before you get into a situation you cannot get out of, child.”

Grinding his teeth, Duke was about to retort back with an answer when Tim came running around the corner, clearly out of breath.

“Lark! We’ve been compromised! We need to leave now!”

Inwardly groaning, Duke was prepared to run when, suddenly, the stranger grabbed his arm.

“Hide. I’ll deal with your mess.” Was all he got before he was shoved unceremoniously under some garbage bags and boxes without a chance to protest. Tim looked stunned before the man gave him a pointed look and he proceeded to dive into the garbage pile next to Duke.

Peeking from between the bags, Duke saw the men whose drug deal he was trying to bust round the corner and spot the stranger. He winced as he thought the strange man who was about to get the beat down of his life. Boy was he wrong. The men looked confused as to where the boy they were chasing went. They spotted the stranger and walked up to him, thinking they could beat out the answer they wanted from the man. Instead, they were the ones that got the beating of a lifetime instead for their troubles.

Duke staring in awe as the stranger stepped away from the unconscious bodies and crouched down in front of where the two boys were hiding.

“You may come out now.”

Slowly crawling out, the two boys stood up and silently looked up at the man.

“Can you train us to do that?” Duke blurted out, then froze. What was he even thinking, asking this man right after he saved them. Staring at the two, the man seemed stunned before quickly composing himself.

Giving them one last cursory glance, he scoffed and started walked away.

“If you are planning to continue those ridiculous night time activities of yours, you might as well get all the help you can get. That is, if you can even keep up with me.”

Looking at Tim, Duke shrugged and followed the man. With new skills, he could help his city better than what he was doing currently.


	16. Batman

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> takes place soon after the last chapter.

_The Batman strikes again! Local witnesses have spotted the mysterious vigilante once again saving our innocent civilians from a maniac gunman!_

“Batman? Why are they calling me that?” Damian asked, perplexed as he was reading the headline on the newspaper.

“Because you show up at night like a creep and beat up people like you can see in the dark! Doesn’t help that you wear all black and people can’t see your face.” Duke muttered, grabbing a can of pop from the fridge and shutting the door.

“I’m creepy? And how do people even see a man dressed in black and think ‘That person is a bat!’? Wouldn’t they think ‘That’s a walking shadow!’ instead? “

“Nah. The Batman is easier to say than the Walking Shadow man. Also it’s catchier and easy to remember.”

“But why a bat? There are other creatures that lurk in the dark that are far more menacing. Like a panther! Or an owl! I can’t even fly!”

“You just appear out of nowhere. Like a vampire. And those only appear at night. Like bats. Maybe that’s where the so called mindless masses got the idea from.  You jump pretty far too. Could look like you’re flying to some. “

“I am only wearing a balaclava, sweater and track pants! How does anyone get the image of a bat from that?”

 “Sorry D. Everyone knows that anyone who pops up at night wearing all black is automatically considered a creep. Seriously. It’s bad news to anyone with self preservation. Just be glad that every police from the GCPD isn’t chasing you down like a criminal.”

 

After weighing the positive outcomes (or rather Duke shooting down all of Damian’s carefully constructed arguments about why it makes no sense that he’s called a bat), Damian begrudgingly decided to allow himself to be called the Batman, if only so that his efforts would be recognized by the public. Now if only Duke would stop laughing at him every time his new codename came up...


	17. Another Life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damian is 21  
> Tim/Duke is 11  
> Bruce is 1

It had gone terribly wrong. Damian was in the middle of busting one of Crane’s operations when he found himself on the receiving end of Scarecrow’s newest experiment. After realizing that the antidote he had wasn’t effective in neutralizing the effects of the toxin running in his system, he called for backup. With that done, Damian slumped down on the warehouse wall and waited for someone to pick him up. In his current condition, he wasn’t fit to go anywhere.

Staring blankly ahead, he could feel Scarecrow’s fear toxin kick in. Bracing himself for what was coming, his vision blurred and Damian passed out.

~~~~~~~~~

He woke up to the sounds of a laughing child, followed by someone running and scolding the child for not being careful. Where was he? Sitting up straighter, Damian noticed that he was lying down on a nice bed. The sun was streaming in through the window, and a clock on the bedside indicated that it was past noon. This wasn’t his home. Where was he? The door creaked open, and someone walked in.

“Oh, hey Damian. You’re awake. Just wanted to check in on you since you were out the entire day. Are you feeling better?”

“Tim? What happened?” he found himself asking. He felt a wave of nausea sweep over him as he tried to get up. Tim quickly rushed to his side, helping him sit more comfortably.

“You passed out last night, which gave us quite a scare. We had to drive you into the ER, and the doctors there said you had a really nasty virus. I’m just glad you’re up. Bruce was really worried about you, you know.”

“Bruce?” he asked, then squirmed. He really didn’t recognize where he was. “Where are we?”

“We’re at the manor of course. Where else would we be?’

Damian was going to ask for more clarification when the sounds of tiny feet became louder. A toddler stuck his head through the door way and grinned. It was Bruce. Older than what he remembered, but he would still recognize his face. The child noticed he was awake, and proceeded to climb up the bed he was lying in. Or tried too.  Reality hit as the child realized he was too small to reach his goal. Tim sighed, picking Bruce up and depositing him on Damian’s lap. The child immediately cheered up, clapping and giggling.

Damian found himself smiling as well, raising a hand to brush it through the boy’s hair.

“Daddy! TV!” the child shrieked excitedly. Damian tried not to flinch at the loud noise.

“Oh? What about the TV?” he asked

“He means that he wants you to see the news.” Tim supplied helpfully.

“Okay then. Help me up?” Tim complied, taking Bruce from his arms and placing him on the floor. He then reached out and grabbed onto Tim’s shoulders, steadying himself as he slid off the bed and stood up shakily. Bruce looked up at him and raised his arms, still smiling happily.

Picking up his son, Damian looked at Tim holding the door open for him as he left the room. With Tim leading the way, they went down several flights of stairs until they reached the living room.

“Alfred said that there’s food in the fridge if you were hungry, when you woke up. I can get it for you if you want.” Tim said softly. Damian nodded, watching as Tim left to go to the kitchen.

Turning his attention back to the child, he smiled and said, “Well, let’s take a look at the TV then, shall we?”

The toddler squealed as Damian turned on the television screen.

There was a broadcast of the news where the host was discussing the events of last night’s terrorist attack on Gotham’s Annual City Festival.

_“We have gotten word that thanks to the intervention of one Damian, last name withheld, last night’s attack thankfully did not turn into a tragedy. Instead, only eight people were injured, including the hero who tackled the perpetrator, Doctor Jonathan Crane. Crane was angry that the city had cut funding to his research at the university.  Due to this turn of events, Crane decided to get even by attacking many civilians who were enjoying the festivities by switching out the fireworks with his deadly concoctions of gas. Thanks to Damian, only very few of the weapons went off. Crane has been apprehended and has been sent to Blackgate penitentiary, awaiting trial.”_

Was that what happened last night? Damian felt that some details that were off...

There was a sudden sharp pain in his head and he stumbled, blindly grabbing onto the nearest chair to steady himself.

“Daddy?” Bruce asked, worry crossing his tiny face.

His head swam and as he fell down, he could feel darkness clouding his mind as he fell unconscious...

 

~~~~~~~~~

“...mian. Damian! Are you with me?” Someone was calling for him.

Cracking his eyes open, he immediately regretted it as light stabbed his eyes and his head started throbbing.

“Stay with us, Damian! You’ve been dosed by Crane’s latest experiments! Tim is wiping up an antidote right now!”

Turning his head a bit, he saw that the person talking to him was Duke. Tim seemed to be in the kitchen, doing whatever he was doing. Duke noticed that he was awake and gave him a relived smile.

“Welcome back to the land of the living. How are you feeling?”

“I...” he began before he felt dizzy and his eyes slipped shut once again, passing out to Duke shouting at him to stay awake.

~~~~~~~~~

He woke up again hours later, if the fading light from the sun was an indication. Feeling groggy, he noticed that he was in his real room now. Someone must have helped him up while he was unconscious. There was a water bottle and note on his dresser table. Picking the note up, he saw that it was written by Tim.

_Hey Damian._

_You freaked us out when we found you passed out like that in the alley. I managed to mix up an antidote to the latest strain of what Scarecrow cooked up, so you should be fine when you wake up, albeit a little dehydrated. You were crying a bit when you were passed out on the couch. What did you see? It’s fine if you don’t want to talk about it, but Duke and I are here for you._

_Anyway, we’re out handing out the antidote to anyone caught up in last night’s attacks. We already caught Crane and handed him over to the authority, so don’t worry too much about him. There is some leftovers in the fridge if you feel hungry. Hopefully, we’ll be back soon._

_Feel better!_

_-Tim_

Leaning back on the head board, Damian stared blankly at the wall. After some time, he moved over to his dresser, opened a drawer and removed the secret compartment. He took out a tablet and powered it on. He tapped in the passcode and stared at the footage playing.

Little Bruce was peacefully sleeping in his crib, far away at Wayne Manor, unaware that he was being watched.

After staring at his son on the screen for a few more minutes, Damian turned the tablet off and put it carefully back in its hiding place. Shifting back down, he turned to face the window, staring at the sun as it set.

Closing his eyes, his last thoughts were of the son he was unable to raise.


	18. Superman

“Jon.”

“Damian.”

“Why are you here?”

“Heard you have a new member in your family. I wanted to see if that’s true. So, where is he?”

“That is none of your business. Now, leave.”

“Yeah, no. Your loner shtick isn’t working with me, and it hasn’t for years. Its hard to be scared of the big bad bat when he’s got tiny kids following him around.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Lian wants to know if you’ll be at the next meeting. It would be great if you stopped skipping out. Everyone wants to see you. And your kids.”

“Still not interested.”

“Oh come on!”

“It was nice talking to you, Hicksville, but I have to leave. Truth and justice and all that nonsense you keep prattling on about.”

“Rude!”

“If you really want to see my children, then I suggest that next time, you keep your intentions less transparent. They’ve been here the entire time, you know. Also, you’re one to talk about secret children. Don’t you have a son waiting for you at home too?” 

“Wait! How did you...?”

“I’m Batman.”

“...Real funny, Damian.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You weren't expecting him to show up, did you? Anyways, if you have any ideas for this AU, please tell me in the comments! Prompts will be nice so that I can continue writing.


	19. Red

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damian is 31  
> Tim is 21  
> Jason is 19  
> Dick is 17  
> Bruce is 11

Red. Everything was red. His walls were still dripping with the colour. There were splotches of it all over his bed, clothing and other belongings. Even his treasured bookcase had not escaped the attack unscathed.

Jason was gone from the house for only a weekend, and this is what he was greeted with? Someone had to pay. He stepped out of his room to confront the perpetrators of the crime, only to find himself tripping, landing on the ground, and having a bucket of paint splashing all over him moments later. Turning his head around, he saw that someone had placed a trip wire while his back was turned to the door.

Now he was really seeing red.

“TIM! DICK! WHERE ARE YOU, YOU LITTLE F-“

He cut himself off as he saw Bruce staring curiously from his room, the commotion drawing him from whatever he was doing.

“-FRICKEN BRATS! YOU’RE GOING TO PAY FOR THIS!” HE SCREAMED.

Jason heard giggles coming from the living room. Getting up, he shot a glare at Bruce and ran towards the stairs...

-only to slip and fall down the entire way before landing on his back with a groan. The pranksters had coated the stairs with some kind of slippery substance. It’s probably for the best not to question what the mystery substance was made of. Groaning, he managed to pull himself upright and ran towards the sound of laughter. It seemed that the boys didn’t expect to see him when he tackled Dick to the ground and tied him up. Tim was attempting to make his escape, but sadly failed when Jason turned his attention to him.  Tackling the older boy down, the two wrestled for a bit before Jason finally got the better of him and pinned Tim down. Before he could celebrate his victory, a voice rang out in the room.

“What is the meaning of this?” Jason froze, staring wide eyed at where the voice came from.

Damian was standing at the entrance way of the house, staring down at them with disapproval. It must of looked pretty bad with no context, what with Dick tied up and hanging upside down from the ceiling while Tim was forced on the ground with Jason kneeing him in the back.

“Uh...I can explain.” He muttered sheepishly, hand rubbing the back of his head.

“Please do.”


	20. Gateway

Well. This was it. A start to a new life. He started to walk towards the entrance of the manor, and then froze.

Was this really the right thing to do? Sure, Alfred might have been sad when he announced his plan to start living full time with his biological father, but the old man, as always, didn’t show any hint of emotion. In fact, Bruce hadn’t discussed his idea of starting to ‘superhero’ like the rest of his family, so bringing it up now wouldn’t do him much good.

No. This wasn’t wrong. He would train and become strong enough to help others, so no other child would have to go through what he did. No one would feel helpless when evil was coming after them if he was around. Jason and Stephanie had promised to train him when Damian wasn’t around. At the state Bruce was in currently, Damian would never allow him to go out and patrol the city. Bruce was 16 now. He might not be the same age as Tim, Duke, Steph and the others when they started, but hey, better late than never right?

With determined eyes, he strengthened his grip on his luggage and walked towards the gate of Wayne Manor, leaving behind everything he’d ever known for an unknown future. The setting sun glowed down on him with its last rays of light for the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I'm going back to university next week, so updates won't be as frequent.


	21. Sink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason gets caught up in yet another huge crisis event.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. I realize that I haven't updated in a while, so have this snippet that I hadn't gotten around to uploading. I've been pretty busy for the past few months, so it may be a while before I get a chance to upload another chapter.

It was cold. He had been shot somewhere around his chest. He’s sure that the bullet missed his vitals, but it still hurt a lot. The newest threat to Gotham was something everyone wasn’t prepared for, which was ironic. Forewarned is forearmed his ass. What’s the point of thinking up outlandish counter plans to situations when there were still things that they would never be ready for? Some kind of mystical monster from some other dimension came in and started beating the shit out of everyone. He scoffed. That explained every single crisis of the week the world was going through. Like some entity decided that it wanted to screw everyone over that specific time, schedule be damned.

He was separated from the others when the first wave hit, and was unable to regroup afterwards. Trying to contact them through his earpiece proved futile when he realized that the attack took out all electronic devices and communication signals, which was totally fine. Just perfect for the situation at hand.

A loud boom sounded from what seemed to be the centre of the city. Gritting his teeth, Jason made his way up to the roof of a building, mindful of his injuries. When he reached the top, he gasped. There was a huge swirling purple cloud above the city. There were flashes of lights coming from the cloud. That wasn’t what caught his attention. No, it was what seemed to be a huge pothole growing from the city’s square. It was sucking in the surrounding buildings. Jason hoped that the people inside were evacuated.

There was another boom, and the ground shuddered. To his horror, the building he was on was starting to collapse as well and was starting to getting sucked towards the growing hole.

As he made one last scramble to safety, a piece of falling debris hit him hard on the head. Quickly losing conscious, the last thing on Jason’s mind was if he or anyone in his family were going to survive this mess. 


	22. Fitting In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cass trying to fit in at a private school.  
> (Alternate title: Right of Existence)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys, sorry this took so long to update. course work and all took over my life for the past months. i'll try not to leave a huge gap in between updates next time. enjoy :)

It was hard. She always knew that she was different, but any confirmation of it was still a) slap in the face. Everyone was staring at her like she was a freak, like someone who didn’t belong, someone who had no right to stand next to them. It made her feel small.

Words didn’t come easily to her. She had trouble understanding the noises people made, but actions? They told her what a person was really feeling, even if though their voices held a different tone. She had been trained from a very young age to fight, and to live only for following the orders of other. Individualism had no place in a tool, for a tool only existed to serve its master. So that’s how she lived. Carrying out every command the Demon's Head threw at her with no regard to her well being. Cassandra barely even knew she had a name until she heard someone say it. What was Cassandra Cain if she was not a weapon of destruction? Could she even exist as a 'normal' person?

The demo-Damian had offered her a new life that he promised would be better, but now as she stood in front of her peers covered in coloured liquid and being laughed at, she wondered if she had really left her old life for something better.

She turned and walked away from the jeering and gawking onlookers, holding emotions in as much as she could. Let them point and laugh. They didn't know the truth. With her head held high, she let their insults slide off of her. Let them laugh all they want. 

Actions spoke louder than words, after all.


	23. The Beach

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a longer chapter that came from a prompt that my friend gave me. It's been pretty cold up here, so here's hoping that spring comes soon!

It was a clear sunny day, perfect weather for a trip to the beach.

After all of the younger kids in his care had begged him to take them, Damian finally caved in and agreed. Well, not after he found out that Tim and Duke were going to take them to the beach no matter what he did. 

“Alright everyone, get in the car! We’re leaving!” Tim called out. Jason sped to the vehicle, followed closely by Dick and Bruce.

“Shotgun! I call shotgun!” Jason yelled, making a beeline for the front seat. 

Bruce flinched, which Dick noticed, so he placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. 

“Jason, you big man-child! Watch it!” Dick hollered at him. Jason snickered in response.

Stephanie walked out the house with Duke, discussing what activities were best for playing at the beach. 

Damian got into the driver’s seat of the minivan and waited for everyone else to get in. With Jason at the front, Dick and Bruce sitting behind them with Duke, Tim and Stephanie sitting at the very back of the van, after they finished loading up the trunk, the family was finally ready to go.

After a thirty minute ride to the beach, the sun was high up in the sky as they unloaded from the vehicle and brought out their towels, umbrellas, toys and food. 

When they were done setting up, the group took turns going to change into their swimming gear in the restrooms and putting on sunscreen. Dick was apprehensive at first about going into the water, but after Duke and Stephanie promised to give him some lessons in swimming, the teen looked a bit less worried. 

Jason and Tim immediately ran out to the ocean, screaming that each would be the faster swimmer. 

Looking at them, Damian smiled softly before making his way over towards the umbrella and beach towels, hoping to get some sleep.

Elsewhere, in the shallow end of the water, Stephanie was demonstrating to Dick the basics of front crawl, mimicking the motions and hoping he would catch on. Duke was holding him up and watching the teen copy Stephanie’s movements. When the pair were confident that he got the basics down, they dragged him into a deeper portion of the water and released him. He struggled for a moment, but quickly gained a rhythm and was soon paddling through the waters in a more confident manner. 

Bruce was standing on the shore, holding a timer as he squinted off into the distance, trying to make out whether Tim or Jason was holding a lead in their third rematch lap, as the other two races ended in ties. When they made it to the end of their agreed hallway point, they turned and made a beeline back to the shore. The two were aggressively doing their best to push the other aside, not paying attention to where they were going. Bruce could only look on in horror as the squabbling heroes continued on their collision course into a paddle boat in their path. The occupants of the boat didn't seem to be paying attention either. Before the ten year old could warn them about the incoming accident, Jason finally seemed to stop fighting with Tim to notice what was coming. He grabbed the older man and shoved him to the side, just in time for the paddle boat to finish whizzing past the two without causing an accident. Taking advantage of the situation, Tim grinned and dunked Jason’s head underwater, then bolted straight to the shore where Bruce was staring at them. Rising back up and spluttering from the ambush, Jason screamed at Tim and charged right after him. 

Tim made it first to the other side and proceeded to run out of the water, turning around and laughing at the younger man. Jason caught up and proceeded to lunge at Tim, roaring at the other man in rage. Tim dodged and ran, laughing at a angry Jason who was still chasing him and screaming bloody murder. Bruce just stood there and stared at them in silent shock.

Meanwhile, Dick was having the time of his life, paddling his way to Stephanie, who was grinning and splashing water at his face. Duke smiled and took pictures from the shore. Dick caught up with the blonde girl and splashed her back. Revenge was sweet. Stephanie only laughed and forced a huge wave at him, causing him to lose balance and fall underwater.

~~~~

Hours later, Damian woke up, blinking at the bright light. Looking around for his kids, he saw them in the distance playing in the sand. Bruce was helping Duke make a sand castle while Stephanie looked on and was filming them. Dick and Tim were… Wait. Sitting up straighter, he could see that they were burying Jason neck deep in the ground. He was clearly gagged and turning red from the anger of being ambushed by his brothers. “BOYS!” he shouted, standing up and slowly walking towards them. The two stopped what they were doing and turned in his direction, horror growing on their faces as they saw him making his way towards them. “WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING???”

After scolding them for recklessly ‘endangering’ their siblings (all counter arguments and defences were cut short by the world famous disappointed-dad-glare), he finally relented after seeing Bruce’s tired face and took them to the boardwalk, buying everyone an ice cream cone to cool off from the bright sun (except for Tim and Dick. They know what they did.).

They needed more of that. Staying in a dark and dreary city for too long couldn't be good for the health of growing children. Damian looking on fondly at his family as they quickly finished their snacks, and they packed up their belongings into the van. 

As they drove back to the city, Damian looked into the rearview mirror. Bruce was leaning against Stephanie, clearly asleep and exhausted from the day’s outing. Duke was sitting up straight next to him with his arm crossed and eyes closed. Jason was letting Dick sleep on him, with Tim on the other side squished against the window, also passed out. Damian smiled to himself. Life was good.


	24. Win

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a flashback to when Damian was younger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi sorry for the delay. uni stuff didn't really let me work on this au. this hasn't been edited properly, so if you see anything off, please tell me!

“Watch your left.” was all the warning Damian got before he was punched in the jaw. Recoiling back, he held his cheek and glared up at his assailant. The Demon’s Head looked down at him, an unimpressed look on his face.

“Pathetic. How do you even hope to succeed me if this is all you can do? If this is the sum of all you have learned under my tutelage, then it is better if I throw you back in the same gutter I found you in. Rise.” the older man spoke with clear contempt dripping from his voice. 

Sixteen year old Damian thought back to his earlier life. Before the league, he had vague memories of living in the streets in a isolated desert city, where everyday was a struggle to survive. He was the youngest at the time, but that meant he had to compensate for that weakness by fighting with everything he had to be at the top. Damian would never know what he did to catch Ra’s al Ghul’s attention, or why he decided to take him in trying as his successor. So here he was, now, duelling with the man who took him in at the ripe old age of four. 

How much of his old memories were real and how many were false, planted in to keep him grateful for living in hell? It didn't matter now. The League was all he had. 

Circling each other, the two warily eyeing the other, looking for a weakness or opening to exploit. Ra’s struck first, lunging forward, ready to strike the teenage down. Damian saw the attack coming and evaded the blow, recovering from the sudden assault and quickly bent down to sweep Ra’s off his feet. Seeing the older man unbalanced, he took his chance and struck. Pinning him down and holding him in a choke hold, he leaned in towards the Demon’s Head’s ear. 

“Yield.”

Waiting for the other man to tap out, Damian let Ra’s up and the two quietly regarded the other. Ra’s gave a soft smile. “You have down well this time, young Damian. I am proud. Take the rest of the night off. We will speak again at dawn.” Ra’s turned and left the training room. Another assassin strode in a few minutes after and led Damian to the infirmary for treatment. He had worked with her several times before in covert missions, mostly for sabotaging political leaders whose goals did not line up with what the Demon was planning. Damian knew that Ra’s wanted to talk to him about a new mission, and it was more than likely that he was to work with her. 

Leaning back on the wall, he closed his eyes and let the other tend to a cut on his arm. No matter. He would deal with whatever the Demon’s Head threw at him when it came. 


	25. Red Arrow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bring back lian harper you cowards.

“Missed me, Damian?” 

“Harper? What are you doing here?” 

“Jon told me that you’re running a tiny superhero daycare.So I was thinking...”

“No.”

“Awww. I haven’t even finished. How do you know what I was going to ask?”

“It doesn’t take a genius to figure out you want me to babysit your child. And the answer is still no!”

“Come onnn. Roy is like the cutest little critter you’ll ever meet! He’s very well behaved.”

“I highly doubt that.”

“Rude!”

“Tell me why you’re really here, or I’m leaving.”

“Wow, you sure drive a hard bargain, mister tall, dark, and handsome. Fine.I want to set up a play date for Roy, since, you know, it’s really hard to trust people outside of the superhero community and I heard you’ve got a ton of kids, so maybe.”

“My answer’s still no.”

“Not even to visit?”

“No.”

“Jeez. You suck the fun out of everything. I’ll tell Jon to stop pestering you to attend the meetings.”

“...”

“...andddd... I’ll also take over your monitoring shifts for two weeks.”

“I’ll take your word for it then,” Damian replied as he walked off. 

“Jason was looking for a part time job anyways.” He added as an afterthought, then jumped off the building and grappled away.

“...jerk.”


	26. Jason

He’s scared. 

Jason Todd is all alone. His mother is dead and his good for nothing father is rotting away somewhere in jail for who knows what crime. Or he’s dead too. Who cares? He sure doesn’t. There’s a crunch, a telltale sign that someone is nearby. Danger. Jason scrunches himself further. Maybe the intruder won’t see him in here.

“I know you’re in there, kid. Did you really think you could get away with stealing the tires off of my motorcycle?” an irate voice rang out. Shoot. The person he stole from had caught up to him. He couldn’t go to juvie. 

Seeing a shadow through the doorway of his room, Jason acted out instinctively.

“RAAAAARGHHH!” he screamed, as he tried to tackle the intruder. Tried is the keyword. Whoever came in swiftly dodged his attack, then pinned him down with one hand. How was that fair in any universe? 

“OK kid, that’s not going to work on me. So tell me why you decided that it was a good idea to just take from me while I wasn’t around.”

“Screw you!” Jason yelled at the stranger.

Bad move.

The intruder only applied more pressure on top of him. 

“I’m going to ask again. Why. Did. You. Steal. My. Wheels?” 

“Oh, give it a rest, Red.” A feminine voice said. “Can’t you see he’s really scared?”

“My wheels Spoiler! I’ve been working on modding them for months! I’m not letting a brat steal them and do who knows what with them!” the man on top of him growled back, clearly very annoyed.

“He probably did it for some cash, rich boy. Not that you would know how the other side lives would you now? You can’t blame him for trying to survive in this messed up city.” the girl said. She walked in and placed her hands on her hips, staring down at the man pinning him. What was an angel like her doing with a person like him anyways?

“But my-“ the man in red interjected.

“No. Let him up Red. He was only trying to live.”

“But he’s a criminal!”

“A ‘criminal’doing his best to make sure there’s food on the table. Let him up. Don’t make me use force.” the purple vigilante shot back. The man (Red? Was that really his ‘hero’ name? How uncreative is that?) reluctantly got up and released his hold on him, stepping back with a frown on his face. 

“There. Was that so hard?” the girl asked him, smirking. She got a glare in return from ‘Red’. She walked over to Jason. He looked up at her in awe. Kneeling down in front of him, she smiled and spoke.

“Hey kid. The name’s Spoiler. Don’t mind Red Robin over there. He’s just cranky from the lack of sleep he’s been getting.” There was a scoff at this, but she ignored him and continued.

“Believe me, I know how much it sucks going to sleep hungry.But stealing is not the way to make things better. Here, take this.” Jason couldn't believe his eyes as he saw her reach into her belt and pull out some cash and a card. “That should be enough to last a week. When you run out, go to this address. The community centre is looking for volunteers. They give everyone who helps out meals everyday. If you’re good, then they might give out some cash too. Got it?”

Jason nodded, unable to speak.

“Good. See you around then, kid. Let’s go, Red.” she said with a smile, nudging her partner as she walked past him. When the two left the apartment, Jason slumped down and stared at the ceiling. 

Who were those two vigilantes?

Would he ever see them again?

Looking at the card Spoiler gave him, he made a mental note to check it out later. Just in case it wasn’t a trap of course.


End file.
